Inkjet stylus

ABSTRACT

The inkjet stylus includes a nozzle for depositing ink onto a writing surface. The ink is drawn from an ink cartridge, which may contain a plurality of ink containers, each holding a different color ink. A switch mechanism is used to select different combinations of ink to produce different colors. A microcontroller controls the switch mechanism so as to select the combination of inks that will produce the desired color, and also controls how the ink is deposited on the writing surface using the nozzle. A battery powers the electronic devices in the inkjet stylus.

RELATED APPLICATION DATA

This invention is related to commonly assigned U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 09/816,556, titled “Coordinated Knob and Display For Navigationof Hierarchical and Range Selectors,” filed Mar. 23, 2001, incorporatedby reference herein.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention pertains to a writing device, and more particularly to awriting device incorporating multiple colors.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The arts of writing and drawing are ancient ones. Cave paintings aresome extraordinarily early examples of drawing. And written languagegoes back at least as far as Egyptian culture.

But there have always been limits to what can be done with writing anddrawing. First and foremost is the limitation of “one pen=one color andpen size.” Even today, graphic artists have tremendous numbers of pens,each dedicated to a single combination of color and nib size. Further,manufacturers generally limit the color choices available to artists.When the graphic artist wants a different color or to use a differentnib, the graphic artist must change pens, and find a pen with the bestmatch for the desired color.

Painters typically work with only a few brushes of different sizes, andmix their own colors. But even with only a few brushes, changing thesize of the brush requires changing brushes. Further, reusing brushesrequires cleaning them with chemicals. And mixing colors on a palette isdifficult work, requiring a high degree of skill to know what colors tomix and in what proportions.

The present invention addresses this and other problems associated withthe prior art.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows an inkjet stylus according to an embodiment of theinvention.

FIG. 2 shows the procedure used by the inkjet stylus of FIG. 1 to writeon a piece of paper.

FIG. 3 shows the procedure used by the inkjet stylus of FIG. 1 to applya new style.

FIG. 4 shows the procedure used by the inkjet stylus of FIG. 1 to draw apicture.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 shows an inkjet stylus according to an embodiment of theinvention. In FIG. 1, inkjet stylus 105 includes nozzle 110. Nozzle 110is responsible for applying ink to the surface of the paper. The ink isdrawn from ink cartridge 115. Ink cartridge 115 includes ink containers,such as ink containers 120-1 and 120-2, which store the ink fed tonozzle 110. In one embodiment, ink cartridge 115 includes 4 inkcontainers, storing inks in the colors cyan, yellow, magenta, and black,which can be mixed to produce any desired color. However, a personskilled in the art will recognize that ink cartridge 115 may includemore or fewer ink containers, and may include different colors of ink.Ink cartridge 115 may be designed so that the ink containers areindividually replaceable, or may only be replaced as a unit with the inkcartridge. Ink cartridge 115 also includes valves, such as valve 125.Valve 125 delivers ink from the ink container within ink cartridge 115to nozzle 110.

Switch mechanism 130 is responsible for selecting the colors of ink tobe delivered to the nozzle. Switch mechanism may specify that anycombination of colors in ink cartridge 115 be delivered to nozzle 110 bythe valves. This also includes the possibility of a single color (i.e.,ink is drawn from only one ink container). The inks drawn from thecontainers are then mixed in the correct proportion to produce thedesired color of ink that is applied to the writing surface by nozzle110.

Inkjet stylus 105 also includes motion sensor 135. Motion sensor 135 isresponsible for sensing the movement of inkjet stylus 105. When inkjetstylus 105 is lifted from the writing surface, motion sensor 135 sensesthis and stops the flow of ink through nozzle 110. In variousembodiments, motion sensor 135 may include pressure sensors to detectwhen nozzle 110 is no longer pressed to the writing surface, an opticalsurface to detect when inkjet stylus 105 is moved by changes in light,and accelerometers to determine when inkjet stylus 105 has movedrelative to a starting point on the writing surface.

In a second embodiment, inkjet stylus 105 not only writes in any desiredcolor, but also writes using any desired line style. For example, inkjetstylus 105 may write using a variety of line widths. Alternatively,inkjet stylus 105 may write using a line pattern, so that when the userdraws a line, portions of the line are inked, and other portions of theline are left blank. In this embodiment, motion sensor 135 senses themovement of inkjet stylus 105 to determine when nozzle 110 should applyink to the writing surface and when nozzle 110 should not apply ink.

Microcontroller 140 controls the application of ink to the writingsurface via nozzle 110 (depending on the line style being used).Microcontroller 140 receives input from motion sensor 135 and instructsnozzle 110 when to apply ink and how much ink to apply. Microcontroller140 is also responsible for instructing the ink containers within inkcartridge 115 to dispense ink via the valves. In this manner,microcontroller 140 is responsible for selecting the colors of ink to bemixed for application by nozzle 110 to the writing surface.

Because inkjet stylus 105 requires power, battery 150 provides thenecessary power to the electronics within inkjet stylus 105. Thisincludes microcontroller 140, switch mechanism 130, and nozzle 110,among other electronic components. A person skilled in the art willrecognize that other power sources than a battery may also be used. Forexample, other “untethered” power sources may also be used, such as fuelcells, and “tethered” power sources, such as an alternating currentadapter and cable, may also be used.

In an alternative embodiment, inkjet stylus 105 includes color sensor145. Color sensor 145 samples a color to which inkjet stylus 105 ispointed. Microcontroller 140 then determines the appropriate combinationof colors of ink to mix to produce the sampled color. (The combinationof colors needed to produce the sampled color may be stored in a memory,not shown in FIG. 1.) Color sensor 145 may include a calibrated lightsource to sample the color source.

In an alternative embodiment, inkjet stylus 105 may include a selectiondevice, which may be used to select a desired ink color or line style.In FIG. 1, the selection device includes knob 155 and display 160. Knob155 is used to navigate a menu. Twisting knob 155 allows a user to viewthe different choices within the menu: for example, to select a desiredink color or line style. Pushing or pulling knob 155 allows the user toselect or reject a current choice in the menu. A person skilled in theart will recognize that either pushing or pulling knob 155 may be usedto select or reject a selection, but it is more intuitive to push knob155 in the direction of selection device 1 OS to select a menu choice.

As the user navigates the menu using knob 155 (both by twisting knob 155and by pushing or pulling knob 155), display 160 is updated to reflectthe current choice. Thus, as the user twists knob 155, display 160scrolls up/down to reflect the change in the selection, “rotating” theselection in display 160 to correspond with the direction knob 155 isrotated. Then, when the user selects or rejects a selection, display 160scrolls left/right to reflect the selection or rejection of a choice inthe menu.

The menu navigated by the user is stored in a memory within inkjetstylus 105 (not shown in FIG. 1). If the menu initially includes inkcolors and line styles, as more colors and line styles are introduced toinkjet stylus 105, the menu may grow. For example, in the embodimentshown in FIG. 1, inkjet stylus 105 may include plug 165 to which asecond device may be connected. The menu update may then be downloadedfrom the second device (which may be a computer or any other device withwhich inkjet stylus 105 may interoperate). Alternatively, in a secondembodiment, the mechanism for updating the display may include awireless receiver (not shown in FIG. 1), which may be used to receiveupdates to the menu.

The menu may have only a single level (with one or more selections), orit may have multiple levels. If the menu has multiple levels, then someselections within the menu will cascade to a lower level menu. Acceptingthese selections will open the lower level menus. Conversely, if theuser is at a lower level menu and rejects a selection, the user will bebrought to a higher level menu.

FIG. 2 shows the procedure used by the inkjet stylus of FIG. 1 to writeon a piece of paper. At block 205, the user selects a drawing style (forexample, a desired ink color and/or line style). At block 210, ink isdrawn from the ink cartridge. Ink may be drawn from more than one inkcontainer within the ink cartridge, so that when the colors of ink drawnare mixed, they produce the desired ink color. At block 215, the ink isdelivered to the nozzle. At block 220, the movement of the stylus ismonitored to make sure that ink is only applied to the writing surfaceand not randomly squirted into the air. Motion and pressure sensorswithin the stylus determine whether the stylus is moving and in contactwith the writing surface. This also insured that when the stylus is notin motion (for example, if the user stops moving the stylus because heis in thought), ink does not continue to saturate the writing surfaceeven if pressure is applied. Finally, at block 225, the ink is appliedto the writing surface according to the drawing style, so that thecorrect color ink, line style, and other parameters are used.

FIG. 3 shows the procedure used by the inkjet stylus of FIG. 1 to applya new style. In FIG. 3, there are two ways a new style may be applied.At block 305, a new drawing style is input through a port in the inkjetstylus. As described with reference to FIG. 1, this input port may be aport on the stylus to which a second device can be plugged, or the inputport may be a wireless receiver designed to receive the drawing stylevia a wireless transmission (utilizing, for example, radio-frequency(RF) transmission, infrared transmission, Bluetooth, or any otherwireless communication protocol). Alternatively, at block 310, the colorstyle can be scanned by the stylus itself using a color sensor. Eitherway, at block 315, the new style may be applied.

Another use for the embodiments of the invention is to reproduce aninput picture. FIG. 4 shows the procedure used by the inkjet stylus ofFIG. 1 to draw a picture. At block 405 the inkjet stylus receives theinput pattern (i.e., the picture). As discussed above, the pattern maybe input using an input port or may be received wirelessly. At block410, the motion of the inkjet stylus is tracked relative to a startingpoint. At block 415, the current point of the inkjet stylus is comparedto the starting point. The corresponding point in the input pattern isdetermined, and at block 420 the color of that point in the inputpattern is determined. At block 425, ink is drawn that, when mixed,produces the color of the point in the input pattern. Finally, at block425, the ink is applied to the writing surface. Then, as the user movesthe stylus around on the writing surface, eventually the pattern will becompletely reproduced.

Having illustrated and described the principles of our invention in anembodiment thereof, it should be readily apparent to those skilled inthe art that the invention can be modified in arrangement and detailwithout departing from such principles. We claim all modificationscoming within the spirit and scope of the accompanying claims.

We claim:
 1. A pen, comprising: a plurality of inks; a switch mechanismdesigned to select a combination of the plurality of inks; a nozzledesigned to apply the combination of inks to a writing surface; amicrocontroller designed to control the switch mechanism and the nozzle;and a power source designed to power the switch mechanism, the nozzle,and the microcontroller.
 2. A pen according to claim 1, the pen furthercomprising an ink cartridge storing the plurality of inks.
 3. A penaccording to claim 1, the pen further comprising a sensor designed totrack a motion of the pen.
 4. A pen according to claim 3, wherein thesensor includes an accelerometer.
 5. A pen according to claim 3, whereinthe sensor includes an optical sensor.
 6. A pen according to claim 1,the pen further comprising a pressure sensor.
 7. A pen according toclaim 1, the pen further comprising a color sensor.
 8. A pen accordingto claim 7, wherein the color sensor includes a calibrated light source.9. A pen according to claim 7, wherein the color sensor is designed toscan a color use by the pen.
 10. A pen according to claim 1, the penfurther comprising a selection device.
 11. A pen according to claim 10,wherein the selection device includes: a display designed to present aselection; and a selector operable in two independent axes, a first axisfor changing the selection and a second axis for acceptance or rejectionof the selection.
 12. A pen according to claim 11, wherein the selectionis drawn from a set including a plurality of pen colors, patterns, andline widths.
 13. A pen according to claim 1, wherein the nozzle isdesigned to generate a plurality of patterns and line widths.
 14. A penaccording to claim 1, the pen further comprising data input means.
 15. Apen according to claim 14, wherein the data input means includes aconnector designed to accept a connection from a device.
 16. A penaccording to claim 14, wherein the data input means includes a receiverdesigned to wirelessly receive data from a device.
 17. A pen accordingto claim 14, wherein the data input means are designed to receive adrawing style for the pen.
 18. A pen according to claim 1, wherein thepower source is a battery.
 19. A method for using a pen, the methodcomprising: navigating a menu using a selection device, the menuincluding at least a style and at least one level, the selection deviceoperable in two independent axes, a first axis for changing the styleand a second axis for acceptance or rejection of the style; selectingthe style; displaying the selected style in a display; drawing ink froman ink cartridge; delivering the ink to a nozzle; and applying the inkto a writing surface using the nozzle.
 20. A method according to claim19, wherein navigating a menu includes updating the display as theselected style changes.
 21. A method according to claim 19 whereindrawing ink includes: drawing ink from a plurality of containers in theink cartridge; and mixing the inks to produce a desired color.
 22. Amethod according to claim 19, wherein applying the ink includes applyingthe ink in a pattern to the writing surface using the nozzle.
 23. Amethod according to claim 19, wherein applying the ink includes applyingthe ink in a line width to the writing surface using the nozzle.
 24. Amethod according to claim 19, wherein: the method further comprises:receiving an image into a memory in the pen; determining a location ofthe pen relative to a starting point on the writing surface; andidentifying a point in the image corresponding to the location of thepen; and drawing ink includes printing the point.
 25. A method accordingto claim 24, wherein printing the point includes: determining a colorfor the point in the image; and printing the color for the point.
 26. Anarticle comprising: a storage medium, said storage medium having storedthereon instructions, that, when executed by a pen, result in:navigating a menu using a selection device, the menu including at leasta style and at least one level, the selection device operable in twoindependent axes, a first axis for changing the style and a second axisfor acceptance or rejection of the style; selecting the style;displaying the selected style in a display; drawing ink from an inkcartridge; delivering the ink to a nozzle; and applying the ink to awriting surface using the nozzle.
 27. An article according to claim 26,wherein drawing ink includes: drawing ink from a plurality of containersin the ink cartridge; and mixing the inks to produce a desired color.28. An article according to claim 26, wherein: the storage medium hasfurther stored thereon instructions, that, when executed by the pen,result in: receiving an image into a memory in the pen; determining alocation of the pen relative to a starting point on the writing surface;and identifying a point in the image corresponding to the location ofthe pen; and drawing ink includes printing the point.
 29. An articleaccording to claim 28, wherein printing the point includes: determininga color for the point in the image; and printing the color for thepoint.
 30. An article according to claim 26, wherein navigating a menuincludes updating the display as the selected style changes.
 31. Anarticle according to claim 26, wherein applying the ink includesapplying the ink in a pattern to the writing surface using the nozzle.32. An article according to claim 26, wherein applying the ink includesapplying the ink in a line width to the writing surface using thenozzle.
 33. An article according to claim 26, wherein applying the inkincludes applying the ink to the writing surface using the nozzle in theselected style.
 34. A method according to claim 19, wherein applying theink includes applying the ink to the writing surface using the nozzle inthe selected style.